Hydraulic systems in an ancient underground Iranian city.

This beautiful system of tunnels built into natural rock serves as a centuries old plumbing system.

A 1,500-year-old, 3-story subterranean city where ancient Persians took refuge in times of war.

Ancient structures used to make and preserve ice in the deserts of Persia.

This ruined fortress was the stronghold for a persecuted medieval leader and his infamous Assassins.

A spectacular rainbow of stained glass makes the "Pink Mosque" one of the most beautiful in Iran.

Iran's colorful terraces are a rare geological masterpiece.

Mirrors and glass shards cover every inch of this arrestingly beautiful mosque.

This former monument to an invented Iraqi victory was turned into a military camp during the subsequent invasion.

An ancient sanctuary that has long been a holy site for the Chaldean Christian Church.

A giant bisected onion dome remembers the Iraqis who died in the Iran-Iraq War.

A boiling wellspring flowing with natural gas burns in a continual blaze.

This beautiful arched gate is all that remains of the fortress the ancient mountaintop town of Amadiya once was.

An ancient fortified mound raised over the millennia from settlements built one on top of the other.

9th century Abbasid mosque, damaged in modern warfare.

The sacred shrine of the Yazidis.

Celebrated as a center of civilization, the remains of the ancient city have been nearly destroyed by greed, egoism, and war.

Ancient rock-cut tomb? Definitely. That of a great Median king? Unlikely.

A bloody history is captured in this former prison turned museum.